OUR MISSION
Ensuring Snow Leopard survival and conserving mountain landscapes by expanding environmental awareness and sharing innovative practices through community stewardship and partnerships.
Ensuring Snow Leopard survival and conserving mountain landscapes by expanding environmental awareness and sharing innovative practices through community stewardship and partnerships.
Photo by Steve Tracy
Photo by Steve Tracy
Photo by Tashi R. Ghale
Photo by Alexander Kuksin
Photo by Bjorn Persson
Photo by Steve Tracy
Photo by Steve Tracy
Photo by Tashi R. Ghale
Photo by Alexander Kuksin
Photo by Bjorn Persson
The Snow Leopard Conservancy is a non-profit organization based in Sonoma, California, formed in 2000, working in partnership with local communities in eight of the twelve snow leopard range countries to ensure snow leopard survival through environmental awareness programs and by promoting innovative stewardship practices.
WHAT WE DO
We work with local partners and herder communities, the front line in preserving the biodiversity of Central Asia’s high mountains, by providing technical and financial assistance for activities linked to stewardship and biodiversity conservation. Our programs build community ownership of projects, long-term self-reliance, and ecosystem health. We involve communities in non-invasive baseline research on snow leopards, their prey and habitat, blending western science with indigenous knowledge.
WHY WE DO IT
There is less and less land for the wild animals in our world. Saving this iconic species has been our life’s work. Our task is to help local communities keep livestock depredation from snow leopards at a manageable level while increasing incomes and strengthening stewardship of alpine ecosystems. We will know we have done our job when Central Asia’s herders recognize and act upon the greater worth of having a live snow leopard rather than a pelt of one that took their livestock.
WHAT ARE THE CHALLENGES
Working in so many different countries and in such remote areas leads to difficulties communicating with our in-country partners. Not to mention, dealing with the rugged mountainous terrain, the brutal cold of winter, and the extremely high elevations is challenging. Travel is slow and arduous, and electronic communications are limited. And the varied regulations and required permits, limited accessibility, and other bureaucratic obstacles create roadblocks to snow leopard conservation.
MAKE A DIFFERENCE FOR SNOW LEOPARDS
Notes From the Field – Kyrgyzstan
NOMAD KIDS' CAMP - 2022 In August of 2022, "the Taalim Forum and Rural Development Fund held an ethno-ecological "Nomad Kids' Camp" for schoolchildren [...]
Notes from the Field – Annapurna Nepal
By Ashleigh Lutz-Nelson, Executive Director One step at a time. That is what I keep telling myself as I climb one step closer to the summit of Kang La Pass [...]
Creating Pathways to a Better Coexistence
Living Alongside Snow Leopards in Mongolia Early last year, in the January 2021 News post "Studying People-Predator Interactions & Testing Foxlights in Mongolia," we described a series [...]
Snow Leopard Conservancy’s Ashleigh Lutz-Nelson and Proyecto Tití’s Rosamira Guillen guide you through their impressive and impactful children’s programs in a Wildlife Conservation Network Closer Look virtual presentation. Hear how they work within schools, support outreach programs, and inspire children on International Snow Leopard Day and Day of the Cotton-top.
A mother snow leopard and her cubs caught on a camera trap video in Pakistan by our partners the Baltistan Wildlife Conservation and Development Organization (BWCDO). What an amazing accomplishment for this snow leopard mother to bring 3 cubs through to adulthood in one of the most rugged and remote locations on our planet! And what a delight to see all four of them together and to hear her communicating with them as they make their way along the mountain path – an excellent sign that conservation measures in this region are working.
Award Presentation
– including a reflection on this year’s contest theme and the importance of creating awareness of the beautiful snow leopard which is leading to successful conservation work being done throughout the snow leopard’s habitat.
– and with Special Recognition of
The Snow Leopard Anthem by Qurbonidin Alamshoev, Country Coordinator, Land of Snow Leopard Network
